


Tailspin

by surestsmile



Category: Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
Genre: Gen, What-If
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2011-09-24
Updated: 2012-01-17
Packaged: 2017-10-24 00:11:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/256659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/surestsmile/pseuds/surestsmile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The world isn't going to end just because we've done everything wrong.</p><p>Though, that would be easier.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. but I want to keep believing

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this](http://apirateworld.tumblr.com/post/10479317095/im-sorry).

It's a tough fight, one not entirely unexpected, given that this is the prince's right-hand man. The rest of his crew steers clear of the battlefield; they've seen enough of his reactions to know this is personal, even if they didn't know his reasons. Joe has never let them in on what Barizorg really means to him, except Marvelous, and he has always intended to keep it that way, up to the end. They may be crew, but Joe values his privacy above everything.

It's amazing how he's managed to tire the cyborg out, inasmuch as a cyborg can feel tired. Joe can feel sweat trickling into his eyes, matting his hair underneath the helmet but he tries to keep to his goal. He repeats Yellow Lion's words in his head like a mantra, _Cid is gone Cid is gone cid is gone_ , to give him the strength that he wanted. Needed. It's dizzying, with all the blocks and guards, attacking and deflecting, until he closes in, pivoting neatly on a heel to sneak behind the cyborg and then Barizorg's guard slips, finally.

He can shatter the skull. He's visted Jou's office more than enough times, looked at the blueprints from Zcien's computer to know that that is Barizorg's sole weakness, the soft organic mass of Cid's brain covered by a thin sheet of metal. Joe sees his target, knows he's steeled himself for this for so many days, and yet-

When he brings his sabre down, somehow he's twisted the weapon so that it's the blunted hilt that crashes down on Barizorg's head, not the sharp blade. The awkwardness of the move cuts his speed as well, no longer fast enough to kill, but it's still enough to knock the commander down. Barizorg lets out a groan of surprise but he's falling to his knees, and Joe crashes down on that hard metal back.

The dust settles, and Joe can see that the gormin and sugormin are gone, and Marvelous is looking at him. His captain's face is still masked, but Joe knows the expression Marvelous is making.

Barizorg is underneath him, still and unmoving, but he is not dead.

Joe de-transforms along with the rest. Don is the first to break the uneasy silence, timidly asking, "He...what are we going to do with him?" It feels strange to have actually subdued an alien commander without subjecting it to a final wave or two, but this isn't any typical alien commander. The rest of the crew looks to Marvelous for guidance, but instead Marvelous looks back at him, waiting for him to call the next move.

Joe bites his lip. The easiest thing will be to leave Barizorg as he is, but it will have changed nothing, and eventually, they'd have to face him again. Killing him now, however, isn't something Joe wanted to do either. Try as he might, Joe can only see Cid now, not Barizorg, and he doesn't want him to die.

"Joe."

"We're taking him with us," Joe says, and Gai predictably explodes. "What? Why? He's an alien commander, right? Why can't we just...take him down now?" Joe is intensely relieved when Ahim puts a hand on Gai's arm to still his questions, because he may just have to punch Gai himself to shut him up. But Gai's questions are valid, and the others are waiting for answers anyway, even Marvelous.

"Joe," Luka says again, with a warning lilt to her voice. She has less patience than Marvelous, and Joe finds that he can no longer run away.

"He's my friend," Joe says, almost too loudly in what he hopes is true bravado. He can see Don flinching in surprise, while Gai seems intent on whispering furiously to Ahim, probably bombarding her with questions that she cannot answer. "I want him back."

"But he's Zanygyack," Don protests softly, and Joe shoots back, "We had no choice." He looks at Marvelous, who simply walks up and grunts as he hefts Bari- Cid up. The rest of the crew still look dubious, but Marvelous is still captain, and they would never overstep his authority.

"He goes in the brig, with chains and a watchman," Marvelous says, and when Joe moves up next to him, he mutters, "I hope you know what you're doing."

Joe didn't have the heart to reply, _I hope so too._


	2. some mad hope

He willingly winds the chains around a prone Cid, securing them to the ubarian-steel constructs that made up much of the brig. They are the strongest they have on the ship, and even then Joe worries that it might not hold Cid when he wakes up. Ahim helps him with the task, heaving the heavy chains like they're merely cords of silks. He's always forgotten that she's much stronger than all of them put together, her home planet of a heavier gravitational pull, and it's only because it's Ahim that she feels she's not as good as any of them at fighting. Still, when they're done, he can feel the weight of her gaze on him, patient and calm and heavy.

"What is it, Ahim?" he asks, and she breathes a sigh.

"Mr Joe," she says softly, "is this really wise?" She sits next to Cid, placing a hand on a metal arm and Joe can't resist bristling a little. He isn't possessive of Cid, but somehow he didn't like the idea of Ahim touching him as though he's her friend as well. Ahim simply looks back at him, watching and waiting. In an instant Joe sees her as the queen she should have been, armed with the trained art of reading people, both friend and foe, in order to protect her own. She wants to help.

Joe isn't sure if he can let her.

"I don't know," Joe answers at last, almost helplessly. "But I want to try."

She moves her hand away from Cid and claspses them together, falling back into contemplative silence. Joe wants to bunker down too, stay with Cid but then he hears things being kicked in the main cabin. Ahim winces delicately at the ruckus, and cocks her head.

"You might want to speak with Miss Luka," she says mildly. "I'll stay and keep watch."

Marvelous and Luka are having a row. Or rather, Luka is carrying the row all by herself while Marvelous glowers silently at her from the captain's chair. The main cabin is a mess, with the table kicked askew and cushions littering the floor. Gai looks on from the corner table, wide-eyed and Don is nowhere to be seen, which is to be expected. Joe catches the tail-end of her rant, which is pretty much, "...and don't forget you're the one that got hurt by him, Marvelous! What were you thinking, letting him on-"

"Drop it," Marvelous says suddenly, and Joe's really as silent as he can be, but somehow Marvelous always knows. He's not sure if Marvelous is being protective of him, and he doesn't think he needs the protection either, but Luka's accusation makes his stomach drop. Of course. He's forgotten what Barizorg had done, and Marvelous has never brought it up at all, even though Joe's seen the great scar countless times thereafter. But Luka, Luka who probably values her crew more than she lets on, remembers. Joe grimaces; this crew fight is apparently a long time in coming, and he just lit the wick.

Luka whirls around, eyes flashing and she shouts, "Gibken!" There's no point in hiding but Joe can't help but feel a little afraid of her, suddenly. He wishes Ahim were here.

"You don't have to shout," he says instead, and climbs up. Luka strides over and winds both fists in his shirt. "You _jiqya_! _Quillik_! You stupid idiot!" With each insult she jerks hard, threatening to tear the fabric and she picks up from where Marvelous had interrupted her, hissing, "Your 'friend' nearly killed our captain. How dare you bring him here."

"I said to drop it," Marvelous says, rising up and Joe raises his hand to stop him. Luka bristles like the great lizards in his home planet; they were usually placid when left well alone, but when agitated their poisonous spines rise, ready to kill. Likewise, she never takes her eyes off Joe, challenging him to give her an answer. If he says anything wrong, she will be on him in an instant, forcing Marvelous' hand to get rid of Cid. As much as Joe should be on her side, defending their crew, he can only think of protecting Cid. Oohara may have been contented with the thought of only saving the souls of his friends, but Joe realizes that deep inside, he has never settled for it himself. Marvelous had taught him that all too well.

"There's nothing I can promise," Joe says carefully. He's weighed his options, and everything; killing Cid without even trying to save him, or leaving the crew in penance, those were unthinkable. The best he can offer is a visit back to Oohara Jou with Don, armed with the blueprint they got from Zcien so long ago, and perhaps to invite the Liveman member on board to examine Cid. This he shares with Luka and Marvelous as calmly and confidently as he can, never betraying his own doubts.

Luka lets go of his shirt when he finishes, but the dark look on her face stays. He can sense the wave of mistrust emanating from her. Of all of them, Luka is the one who values open communication the most, probably because of her past and Joe is aware that he's hurt her with what he's done. "I don't like it," Luka begins, but Marvelous cuts her off brusquely.

"It's a plan," he says, "you said you'd back off if he actually came up with one." Luka's attention is back to Marvelous and Joe unconsciously lets out a breath of relief. He moves to the console, fingers flying over the keys to send a message to Oohara, and Gai creeps up to him.

"Joe-san." Their youngest member shuffles from foot to foot, obviously uncomfortable with the tense atmosphere. "Please. Tell me what's going on."

"I'm sorry," Joe says, and he truly is. But he can't help but feel that the situation he's brought them into is slowly spiralling out of control, and what little he has left he tries desperately to hold on to. "I really can't."

Gai's face falls, and he whirls around, taking steps down to the brig. Joe doesn't stop him, he can't, and anyway, he doesn't want to stick around when Luka's voice raises higher again, her fists coming down on Marvelous and he lets her hit him. Joe can only catch Marvelous' eye, mouthing an apologetic "thank you", and goes to the galley in search of Don.


	3. not here to save the world

He finds their engineer peeling potatoes almost obsessively, a tiny mountain already forming at his feet. Joe deliberately makes more noise than he usually does, so as not to startle Don more than he already is, but Don manages to slice his finger anyway. He watches as Don sticks his finger in his mouth instinctively, and when he takes it out, his skin is already perfectly whole. "Sorry," Joe says anyway, and Don shakes his head.

"It's okay," Don says. "Are they done fighting?" His shoulders are still hunched over, as though he's trying to make himself shrink, and Joe shrugs. "Marvelous can handle Luka," he says. There isn't any more shouting at least, but Joe isn't willing to go back up to check. Don looks over his pile of potatoes, and begins to put them in a huge pot. Joe isn't sure what he wants to do with so many potatoes, but he moves forward to help.

"Doc," he says hesitantly. "Have you ever met cyborgs before?" Don winces, putting one hand up to scratch at his ear. Joe is content to wait until he's ready, and Don does answer within a few moments. "There were cyborgs at the circus," he admits. "But they weren't... extensive like Barizorg's. The cybernetics just extended to parts that needed to be replaced; hands, legs, eyes. You know. Just cybernetic aids. And they didn't come with...mind control."

Joe plays with a potato, fingers digging into the soft flesh and he quickly tosses it into the pot before it can get mangled any further. He wants to believe that Cid's there, sleeping, and with him gone from the power of the Zangyack, Cid might just wake up.

"Do you think, if we're far away enough from the Zangyack, the mind control would lift?"

Don's brow creases heavily. "I don't know, Joe. For all we know, the mind control is situated inside the suit. Or it's operated by Zangyack towers, and _Yilla_ knows how many there are."

Joe closes his eyes and whispers, "Please." It feels terrible, saying that word. He hates asking for help, hates admitting his weaknesses, but Don is the best he knows and if it means giving up his pride, then so be it. Don hauls the filled pot up to the stove and flicks on the fire before he replies, glum and reluctant, "So what do you want me to do?"

\----------------------------------------

Oohara seems inscrutable when they turn up at his office, his laptop already running Zcien's program. Joe averts his eyes at the red words flashing across the screen, and introduces Don to Oohara.

"Pleased to meet you," Oohara says warmly, and he moves to shake Don's hand. "Here's what I've got so far."

Don converses with Oohara in a low voice, which Joe tries very hard not to eavesdrop on even though he thinks that he will not like the outcome. Their engineer has always been easy to read, and the deep furrow and unhappy turn of mouth speaks volumes about the current, hushed conversation. Oohara's grim expression and the constant flickering of eyes to access Joe's possible reaction just makes it even worse.

"Joe," Oohara says, and Joe can't help but brace himself. He doesn't want to know what Oohara thinks of this turn of events. "We've been over this. As far as my expertise goes, this condition is...irreversible."

"Doc?" Joe looks at Don, hoping to find a glimmer of hope in the other alien. Perhaps Oohara could only say so because he is only human, he may not have the technology or the knowledge. But Don, maybe Don has another answer.

The engineer shifts uncomfortably under the desperate gaze. "I...It's pretty damning, Joe," he says softly. He turns the accursed blueprint around, points to the strange script running along the sides. "It's nanite tech."

At Joe's confused look, Don lets out a noise of frustration. "It's...well, it's tiny little computers. Robots. Self-building ones, fast, so that's why it's kind of hard to damage Barizorg in the first place." He pauses then, and Joe waits, still lost. "So what?" he says, and Don flinches.

"So," Don begins to say, slow and nervous and Joe begins to feel prickly himself, curling fingers around the edge of his shirt.

Oohara snaps the tension like a wire. "It might mean that your friend may not be your friend. The tech may not just be constantly repairing the physical structure of the cyborg, it might also be responsible for the thoughts of the cyborg. Your friend could be brain-dead all this while, Joe, and what you're doing, you've brought an enemy home and it's dangerous and stupid-"

His fist flails out, catching Oohara in the chin and Don lets out a shriek before surging forward to get Joe to back off, babbling frantic apologies. Oohara stumbles back a little and massages the hit, and he continues stubbornly, "You know it's true."

"I'm a pirate, Oohara," Joe spits out finally. "I take what I want."

"At the cost of your crew?" Oohara shoots back.

"I know my crew," Joe snarls. "My crew will back me up. What about you? If you ever had a chance and you never took it, could you forgive yourself?

"I don't care if I go through hell," he says, and at that, he hears his voice crack a little, the thought of what Cid must have had gone through bubbling up suddenly. But he keeps his chin tilted high, bleeding false pride and arrogance, because if he doesn't, he knows he'll break. "If this is the extent of how much you can help, then thank you. We'll be taking our leave."

"Wait." Oohara says. "Fine." He types something onto his computer before switching off and unplugging both machines. "I'm coming with you."

Don's grip is still tight on his arm, although Joe thinks that it's more for supporting him now than holding him back. He allows himself to sag a little, grateful for the slight catch, and says, "Okay."


End file.
